Independence of the Seas Reviews

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I was a bit dubious about sailing on such a big ship from Southampton, and had been reading the reviews for months. I was with a group of about 50. Our coach dropped us outside the treminal, and I didn't see our luggage again until it was delivered to our stateroom, just before the lifeboat drill. No problem checking in with no luggage to manhandle. Our promenade room had a double bed made up. (I was shareing with a female friend) We asked the room attendant to convert it to 2 singles, which he did while we were at our muster stations. Only problem then was, there was not a lot of room to squeeze round them......although they had rounded corners, I kept banging my shins.......came home covered in bruises ! We were first sitting in Romeo and Juliette and just freshened up (didn't change) as it was a casual night. There were 3 formal nights later on. Most people dressed up. Had loads of photos taken. Our waiters, Rey and Lavi, were very pleasant, attentive and obliging. Towards the end of the cruise they were anxious that we should give them good reviews on the survey..........no problem ! We had prepaid gratuities. Only thing I didn't like was that the vouchers were printed with who they were for, and I would rather have given more to the assistant waiter who worked his socks off (in the Windjammer in the day), rather than the top waiter who we hardly saw. I did make sure he knew I thought Lavi had potential and should be promoted !! Also it was Lavis 24th birthday the same day as my friends ** (Sunday) They presented her with a slice of cake with a candle and sang Happy Birthday. I had requested a mention on the Late Night Early Morning show on tv, but we must have missed it...........I'm sure they read out all requests ! My friend hadn't been to the Canaries before but we didn't go ashore in Tenerife. hadn't had much sleep for 4 nights. Something tapped all night long. I thought it was something hitting the window, or may have been in the Services next door.We had been informed our window was to be replaced (as were others on out deck) We arranged for it to be done while we were ashore in Gran Canaria. I watched all the Prom Parades through the window, so it was nice to have a clean one. As mentioned by others, the ship was constantly being cleaned. We only had breakfast and lunch in the main dining room on the first sea day. We ate in Windjammer or Sorrentos the rest of the time (apart from evening meals) We ate one night in Windjammer when my friend was late back off the Madiera excursion. Excursions were rushed, and we heard 4 people had been left behind.We had booked the Murder Mystery for that night, but changed it, then Portofinos changed it again. We were late docking in Madiera. We had been going slow because of fog for 2 days. At least we were able to dock, not like the previous cruise. I had been before...........got the photo of the toboggan run ! so stayed aboard. It was like the Mari Celeste. I did seminars or art/craft classes every day. Spent far too much on products and services, and couldn't resist the promenade shops, but missed the $10 sale !!! People complaining shops were shut in Tenerife (Sunday) and Vigo (National holiday) No chance of getting a sun lounger by the pool. RCI need to address the problem of selfish people leaving towels on unattended loungers for long periods. Maybe confiscate their towels after so long, and make them pay ! Pool police needed, like the hand gel police. Handwipes thrust at you for 3 days........hand gel proffered for another 3 or 4, then they appeared to assume you'd got the massage and it was self service hand gel dispensers. I mentioned to a man that children weren't using the gel, and he said boys were leaving the gents toilets without washing their hands in spite of Polly (parrot) constantly reminding us. I ate at Jade usually for lunch.......................more adult exotic food I thought, so unlikely to be touched by children. I didn't see any sushi though !

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This was my first cruise, a party of 6 of us went on a cruise to celebrate my Brother in law and Sister in laws' silver wedding anniversary. Ship I have been a Merchant Navy Officer for 30 years and I am not easily impressed, but I thought the Independence of the Seas was a spectacular ship unfortunately RCI is not so spectacular. Our cabin was a deluxe balcony stateroom and was much better than I expected. Staff The staff I found to be friendly,polite and very helpful.Our cabin attendant kept our cabin clean,tidy and well supplied. The room service staff bought our breakfast hot and on time every morning. The dining room staff were very good, friendly and at times entertaining. Food The food was good quality and plentiful although after about a week it became a bit repetitive. On a cruise to Spain and The Canaries I would have expected the menu to have had a bit of a Spanish influence, but in 10 days I did not see one Spanish dish. Drinks Packages When we joined the ship we were encouraged to sign up for one of the Beer and soda Packages, this cost $45 per day for every day onboard for each person in your cabin, on a ten day cruise this works out as $900 per couple. This should have allowed us 'free' beer,soft drinks and glasses of wine for the whole trip. When you sit down and do the sums it works out that have to drink about 8 Beers or Glasses of wine each per day to make it pay, which unless you are a very heavy drinker is quite alot to drink every day. RCI also have other tricks up their sleeves to make sure you don't get your moneys worth :- 1) You can only get certain beers, wines and soft drinks on the package, we heard of a couple who paid $1500 for the Premium Package but still had to pay extra for a can of Coke. 2) If you have more than 1 drink every 30 minutes for your own 'Health and Safety' the bar staff are instructed not to serve you. RCI don't seem to be so concerned with your 'health and safety' if you are not on a package and are paying for drinks, as so far as I could see you can then drink what you want when you want. 3) If one of your party appears to be getting drunk (difficult not to when you have to drink 8 pints every day) then the barstaff are instructed not serve the whole party. 4) The package is supposed to be an easy and simple way to pay for your drinks, but you have to keep a close eye on your account, as most days we found that we had been charged for drinks we shouldn't have and had to join the morning queue's at reception to get it sorted out. We did not meet anybody who had sailed with RCI previously who had bought a drinks package on their second cruise, many said they had bought one on their first cruise and thought it a waste of money. Drinks on board are expensive about $6.5 a pint (??4.25), this is particularly expensive when you consider RCI are buying it duty free for less that $1 a pint. Excursions We were encouraged at every opportunity to signup for the excursion packages which were very expensive. We only went for the $10 scheduled buses in Madiera and Lanzarote and there was a free bus in Tenerife. You are supplied with quite alot of information about the excursions that you had to pay for, but there was not much information if like most people you just wanted go for a walk ashore in the local area. We were considering signing up for an excursion in Gran Canaria and Vigo as this looked like the only way to get ashore, until we found out from the bar staff that the ship actually stops in the middle of town in these ports and you can just walk ashore. The organisation for passengers not using the paid for excursions was often non existant. For instance when we arrived at our first port Madiera, no instructions were given about going ashore which meant that people began congregating at the gangway, we were eventually organised into an orderly queue which went up the stairways for 3 or 4 decks and there we stayed for about 90minutes until the gangway doors were opened. Buying onboard There is a huge mark up on any Jewelry, Drink or tobacco bought onboard.Drink and tobacco is about twice the price onboard than it is ashore. My wife was looking at a ring in one of the jewelry sales it was marked up $216 but when we peeled back the price tag put on by RCI we found a makers Price tag with a recommended price of $115. Entertainment We only managed to see one show which was an ice show, the show was very good but the organisation of the seating was chaotic and many people ended up having to stand. In conclusion if you are not suckered into any of RCI money spinning Scams you can you can maybe have a good time. Although RCI are keen to tell you about the experience of crews working onboard their ships, it sometimes appears that they have never actually taken a cruise themselves. If I go on another cruise I will look somewhere else.

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Southampton to the canaries :Where do i start! Great cruise, reading previous cruise reviews there was lots of variations in opinions, reviews give a general idea, but depending on the person and what they are like in general life will depend on the review they give , we read the food taste the same whatever you eat, so does salad taste like curry and rice? of course not the food is great but if you eat to much all the time and want to stay bloated then of course you may experience that feeling of non satisfaction, simply put don't over eat. mobility scooters where mentioned in another review, that they are a pain, well they can be , some think its there god given right to go first ,others don't , personally speaking i could not find one mobility scooter on deck unattended, I say this because i would of taken great satisfaction throwing one overboard ! and this comes from a parent with a disabled child. Another review was to many children running round , My answer don't go in holiday time and you won't experience this, children do have a right to enjoy themselves and they provide quality children's clubs that are awesome and believe me they would rather be in there than running around the ship. Our opinion: A clean ship is a healthy ship and believe me it is clean, you use alcohol hand gel before you go in any restaurant or shop, you cannot get out of the toilet without being reminded to was your hands. Waiter service is excellent, restaurants excellent and we recommend using them for all meals because you don't have to fight for a seat, i say that because if you use the windjammer then it is often difficult to find a seat at breakfast and lunch, you get the same in the restaurants on deck 3 and 4 and great service with it. The shows are fantastic , that was an easy one. shuttle buses are over priced. excursion to loro park in tenerife is the best excursion . Lanzarote is lanzagrotty " what a hole, mind you saying that its like landing on the moon so some may like it lol. WARNING do not book your next cruise on board the ship, we did and we got ripped off, British travel agents get you a better deal, we booked on board and got 150 dollars on our next cruise and free parking, when we got home our daughter wanted to join us and they got a better deal cheaper with 400 dollars and free parking, DO NOT IGNORE THIS ADVICE.......... we will make up our money by not paying tips because they won't budge on the offers......Plenty of entertainment, plenty of parties and parades , must see is the ice shows so line up for those tickets the queues go down like lightening, Be in the Alhambra theatre about 40 minutes before the show to get the seat you want there is a waiter service in there. the beer i found about ??3 60 a pint converted for a pint, wine is expensive i thought but we buy from a local off licence at ??6 to ??8 a bottle and it starts at $29 about ??18 in English currency and that the cheapest my opinion is i don't like to overpay. Despite being annoyed about our booking and spitting our dummy out over the price we paid compared to our daughters, i would 100% recommend this cruise to all , so book and enjoy , oh and they loved my some jake and treated him like a king as they do all children ...

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We sailed On Independance Of the seas on 9th May for a 10 day trip, calling at Madeira, Tenerife, Gran Canaria, Lanzarote and Vigo. We had done the 11 day trip previously the year the I.O.S Was launched, although that was in October. Checking in was quick following our coach journey down from Lancashire. The sailing out of Southampton was fine for me, however for some the motion did unsettle them a touch. We had fog on our journey to the first Port of Madeira, and seeing folk sunbathing in Fog is a sight to behold. Especially as some managed to burn themselves! Consequently the fog delayed our arrival into Madeira by a few hours, although we did stop longer. Tenerife, Gran Canaria and Lanzarote were enjoyable although the time spent in Lanzorote was very short. As the temp. was in the nineties and very low humidity, to depart at 2pm was a shame and seemed a very strange call by the company? At this port a family of four missed the departure, and we saw them stood by the port gates through our binoculars, watching the ship sail without them? Not sure why they were late back....such a shame? I believe another couple missed the boat in Madeira also? Food on-board was very very good, given the numbers they cater for. A wide selection of things to do on-board, however showing films in the cinema room with only 60 seats seems a poor effort. Entertainment was very good and varied. Our favourites were the comedy acts. "Kevin" from Armenia was fantastic and deservedly got a standing ovation. The Gym is fantastic and large, so did not get very busy. We had a fantastic cruise all in all and would recommend the ship to others. Yes it is large, but it has something for all ages. My only gripe is the quality of the draught lagers, which were Heineken and Amstel light. Both were very poor quality and it was a case of spot the bubbles! Flat with no gas or head! Finally our stateroom was more than adequate and our Steward was lovely as always.

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Another good voyage on the Indy. After an early morning flight to Southampton we had a couple of hours wait for the transfer to the ship. Transferred to terminal and embarked before noon. This was my 3rd trip on the Indy and my Mums first cruise. Overall we enjoyed the 3 day break and it was long enough to get a real feel for the product. My Mum was very impressed with the beautiful furnishings, chandeliers and quality. ACCOMODATION Took a chance on a Guarantee Balcony cabin as it was to be a short trip. Worked out well and got a D1 on deck 8. Very nice cabin in a good location with a wonderful room attendant. We had requested separate beds and it was set up as a double but he quickly changed during the muster drill. DINING My Time Dining. I always use this option of dining as prefer table for 2. Got a table each evening next to the balcony which was perfect. No queues around 7pm. We love Sorrento's and ate lunch in the main dining room to avoid the sometimes overrun Windjammer. ENTERTAINMENT "Rock the Boat" were still onboard from my Feb voyage and still played the Pyramid Lounge. However, this is where the entertainment is let down. If you are not on 1st or 2nd seating then you can have long gaps where there is virtually no live entertainment going on. To put this band on for a half hour set at 9 till 930 and then pull them for a break is crazy. The night is just getting started with everyone enjoying themselves and then they have to leave the stage to be replaced by a quiz, not returning till 11 is a travesty. We did have a good time in the Labyrinth for the 70s/80s hour - and my Mum is 81 but she had a ball! Once Upon a Time in the main theatre was on offer and is very good to see over again. The Ice Show is amazing no matter how many times you see it. Closing with Centre Stage which is one of RCCLs best shows. And of course Rock Britannia sent everyone away very happy. TRIPS Honfleur half day is a fantastic tour. It is a beautiful town and worth the money. On day two we took a taxi at the pier into the centre of Le Havre. Cost was 8 euros each way. Ship also offers a shuttle service. OVERALL A good cruise for a short break. Weather meant that people congregated inside which congested the bar areas during the day. The Indy is a huge vessel for a first timer and can be somewhat overwhelming. A real mix of passengers on this short cruise and a different feel to the Canaries cruise in Feb which was more sedate. Luckily we got off early and caught our flight out of Southampton just after 9. Many were delayed due to a Customs and Immigration intervention. Full marks to the pier staff for organising our departure and transfer. I will be cruising with Royal Caribbean again in the future, especially if they keep the fillet steak option in the main dining room ! And the Diamond Lounge benefits too...

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